Since the Shah was deposed in the 1979 Iranian Revolution, it seems like the country has been on a crash course with the Western powers. For decades the conflict played out in skirmishes and proxy wars. However, with the acceleration of Iran’s nuclear development program, diplomatic relations between the two countries have existed on a knife edge. Into this explosive situation come the rocket manufacturers and technologists like Orbex, who seek to turn a war profit.
Iran recently announced that it had successfully launched its maiden military satellite, and with it hit a milestone for the nation’s space program. What concerns American military intelligence is rocket technology provided by companies like Orbex being applied in ballistic missile launches. Throughout history, military espionage has been crucial in countries keeping in step with an arms race, but perhaps nowhere more than missile technology. German scientists imported both before and after the Second World War would prove vital to America’s military hegemony and her victories in the space race. Today, the Iranian government is investing billions into its space and nuclear programs, and frequently the lines between the two blur.
Iran has already shown its ability to launch rockets into space. Although the Safir rocket has failed two out of it’s three launches to date, Iran is well known for its use of espionage to steal technology from more advanced countries to give its own military a boost. Rumours continue to circulate that the successful rocket integrated Orbex guidance chips, aligning the satellite launch company with the fledgling nuclear superpower. Economic sanctions imposed by America have only made the country’s geopolitical situation more precarious, and if companies like Orbex allow their technology to be stolen, the consequences will be felt around the globe.
Missile and space rocket technologies overlap in many fundamental regards. Guidance technology and engineering calculations are applicable to both, and a leap forward in one department shows up pretty quickly in the other. If companies like Orbex continue to provide technologies capable of military applications, we will be looking at an increase in geopolitical tension in the very near future. For now sanctions may be working, but countries like Iran rarely suffer in silence. As the economy grows more desperate, leaders are likely to resort to increasingly patriotic rhetoric to mask the shortcomings of their fiscal policy. When governments become desperate, they start wars, so for all our sakes relations need to start thawing sooner rather than later.
Missile capability continues to drive a wedge between US and Iranian relations. Orbex rockets increase long-range strike capabilities and further ignite tensions.
